Free Bets: Get the Maximum Winning

One of the most popular bonuses that online bookmakers offer is free bets. These can be as an enticing offer to new customers, as part of a free bet club for existing customers, or as special one-off promotions via e-mail or text message.

Regardless of the type of free bet bonus, this is the most common and most used type of promotion with online bookies. Everyone loves receiving something for free and having the chance to win big from a free bet is incredibly enticing.

Here, we look at the types of free bets which are offered to new customers, and the things to consider when looking to take advantage of free bet promotions.

As the name would suggest, a free bet bonus is a bonus or promotion which offers customers free bets. These are used as an enticing offer for new customers, who are looking to receive something extra when signing up for a new account with an online bookmaker.

Obviously, these free bets aren’t entirely free. They usually have wagering requirements, minimum deposit, and/or other requirements but it is an extra bet on top of the funds a customer deposits or stakes on a bet.

Free bets may look like a Greek gift, but they can be used to grow your bankroll and make a profit if you know what to do and how to do it. Free bets are a promotion offered by a bookmaker to place bets without using their own money. When using a free bet, the bookmaker funds the stake. If the bet is a winner, the bookmaker deducts from the winnings before paying it to the punter. Free bets are marketing tools used by the bookmaker to attract new customers into signing up with them. They are also used to reward loyal existing customers, or as a means to encourage punters into using a specific type of financial service for depositing funds into their accounts. For instance, many sportsbooks will offer free bets to punters who deposit funds using their credit cards or PayPal.
However, free bets are not exactly free. Apart from bet stake not returned where the bet is victorious, the bookmaker has ‘terms and conditions’ or ‘play-through’ requirements’ before you make money from the free bet. Some of the conditions required for a punter to use a free bet are:

• Registering an account with a sportsbook and depositing a certain amount of funds into the account.
• Deposit funds into your account using an approved payment method. Also known as a deposit bonus.
• Staking bets with your funds and losing the bet.

Furthermore, once the free bet is released to you, the bookmaker may prevent you from winning by ensuring place your bets on enhanced odds offers of evens or higher. It is, therefore, necessary for punters to read the fine print of the terms and conditions before accepting any free betting offers. Free bets may also be limited to specific geographical locations, betting markets, or event.
Although free bets appear appealing at face value, they come at a hidden cost to the punter. These costs can be outrageous. For example, there’s a bookmaker who is known for offering punters £25 as a free bet for newly registered punters. But a careful look at the T&C shows a punter would have to stake a bet with their funds, which must either have a minimum odd of 2.00 or an acca insurance offers bet of four-folds or more. This bet is now matched by the bookmaker using promo funds to the value of £25. The essence of this is that the bookmaker wants the punter to place bets with their funds before the free bet is given. Furthermore, these bets or bet must contain odds of 2.00, which provides the bet with a 25% chance of winning.

Free bets are bets which allow a punter to place a stake on an event without using their money. If the bet is won, the monetary value of the free bet is subtracted from the returns. For instance, a £20 free bet placed on odds of 2.00 will return £20 rather than £40 because the stake is deducted from the winnings. Depending on the promotion running at the time, both new and existing customers can be eligible for the free bets offered by the sportsbook.
On the other hand, a sign-up bonus is a promotion run by a sportsbook to reward new customers for signing up with the sportsbook and depositing funds. It is the sportsbook way of saying ‘welcome’ to the punter. The sign-up bonus comes in different forms. For instance, a newly signed-up punter may be given the choice of free bets, enhanced odds, or bet credits as their sign-up bonus. A Sign-up bonus is only offered once to a punter in his lifetime. Sign-up bonuses are usually significant and may have less restrictive wagering requirements. Sportsbooks have been known to suffer losses on their sign-up bonuses to draw customers into registering accounts with their site.
Although sign-up bonuses are rewarded once in the lifetime of a punter, they do not last a lifetime. And once exhausted, the punter increases the worth of his bankroll by taking advantage of the betting reload offers promoted by the sportsbook.

As already mentioned, and as many people will see when looking at different online bookies, there are several types of free bet bonus. Some of these apply just to new customers, some only to existing and loyal customers, and some can apply to both.

We are concentrating solely on free bet bonuses for new customers, which are promotions used to entice customers to sign up and register for a new account.

These usually work by the site giving free bets to new customers after they have staked or deposited a set amount from their new account. Free bet bonuses will vary, with different requirements, different ways to qualify etc. but ultimately, it is a free bet that the bookmaker covers the cost of.

For example, a site may offer a free bet bonus of £20 to all new customers who deposit and bet £20 within a set time limit after signing up. This means that once a customer bets the £20, a free bet of the same amount will be added to their account.

Any winnings from free bet bonuses are sometimes paid out in real, withdrawable money but will usually have the initial free bet stake deducted. Sometimes, winnings are paid into a bonus balance which will be converted into real money once certain wagering requirements are met.

One free bet bonus which works differently to the others is a risk-free bonus. This is where a customer will deposit and place a bet as normal, with any losses from their first bet being added back to their account as a free bet bonus amount.

There are usually more wagering and other requirements associated with risk-free bets.

With any type of free bet promotion, or indeed any other offer, customers should always read terms and conditions and pay special attention to the small print which a lot of people never take proper notice of.

Most of the popular sportsbooks online will reward a loyal customer. Offers as the betting reloads and price boosts are examples of these rewards. Promotions for existing customers come in the form of higher odds or free bets. Free bets for existing customers also ensure the regular punter enjoys all the freebies enjoyed by the newbie. However, many sportsbooks will require punters to place a bet with a certain amount of money before they can qualify for a free bet. Sometimes, there are deposits needed for the free bet to be activated. In other cases, the free bet is credited to the punter’s account, where the punter’s initial bet loses its outcome. Free bets may be restricted for use in specific events like horse racing and football. Existing customer free bets usually have conditions attached, such as:

Play-through requirements

A play-through requirement means that you have to stake additional bets using your funds before you can withdraw the winnings from the free bet given to you. The way to know the worth of a free bet is to multiply the required number of bets you have to place by the free bet to know its value. For instance, a punter is given £100 as a free bet. If the bet is to used three times before real money can be won, then the punter will have to place bets worth £300 to win the £100 free bet in cash. Play-through requirements vary from sportsbook to sportsbook.

Wagering requirements

The wagering requirement is the minimal value of the odds that must be selected by the punter while betting with his funds for him to receive a free bet. Most punters will set a minimum odds of 1.80 and above for the free bet to be activated.

No matter what your betting pleasure is, there is sure to be a free bet covering that market. Be it, football, horse racing, or Formula One, punters can now receive free bets to be used in all events as their welcome or loyalty bonus. However, all free bets are not created equal. Some offer far more monetary value than others. For a punter to choose wisely, these are factors to consider.

Size and Type of Free Bet Bonus

Obviously, potential customers will be enticed by the promise of a large free bet bonus but sometimes these have more requirements attached to them.

Take the size of the free bet into consideration but also look at the type of free bet bonus.

Is the free bet a risk-free bet? Will it be added to your account after first deposit or first bet? Or, will you have to place five or more bets of the same amount before qualifying to receive a free bet?

Also, make sure to take note of whether the promotion is market specific. In other words, the free bet bonus may only apply to those new customers who place a specific stake on any football market or a specific match.

Turnovers

Most free bets have turn over stipulations, which specifies how many additional bets need to be placed by the punter before the winnings from the free bet can be extracted. For instance, a free bet may have a value of £200. If it is to be turned over four times, then the punter will need to bet £800 of his funds before he can claim the winnings from the free bet.
It is important to remember the higher the turnovers required, the harder it is to collect your winnings from the free bet.

Geographical location

Often enough, free bets may be restricted to punters who come from a specific location like the UK and Ireland, certain parts of Europe, or the US. You should check that your location is not barred from using a free bet before committing your funds.

Wagering Requirements

As already mentioned, most free bet bonuses will have several wagering requirements attached. These are usually in the form of minimum turnover on the free bet amount.

For example, a customer may receive a £10 free bet after placing their first bet from a new account. This may be subject to a minimum turnover of 5x the free bet bonus amount, which means any winnings from the initial free bet will be held in a bonus balance until the customer has staked another £50.

Once the turnover requirements have been met, these bonus funds are then converted to real withdrawable cash.

Expiration Period

Most free bet offers will include an expiration period. This usually means that new customers must place their qualifying bet within a set amount of time after signing up for a new account, and then they will have another set amount of time to use the free bet(s) which they qualify for.

For example, a customer may be given a time limit of 48 hours after signing up for a new account to bet the qualifying amount required for the free bet bonus to be applicable. Once they have qualified for the bonus, the free bet(s) will be added to their account and they can use them as they wish.

But, usually, these free bets will expire around seven days after being added to an account. If they haven’t been used by the expiration date given, the customer will no longer be able to use the free bet.

For this reason, it’s always best to fully read through the terms and conditions before signing up for a free bet offer, note down any expiration period given, and use the free bets as soon as possible after they are added to your account,

Otherwise, you may find yourself missing out on the bonus that enticed you to a site in the first place.

Minimum Odds

This requirement is important as not sticking to it may prevent you from qualifying for a free bet bonus. Basically, most online bookmakers will include minimum odds to any qualifying bets or bets using the free bet stake.

For example, a free bet bonus may require customers to place a qualifying bet of at least £10 on a bet which has odds of at least 1/1 (2.00). Any bets with odds shorter than this will not qualify for the bonus.

Also, the same minimum odds will usually apply to any free bets the customer has qualified for and possibly any bets within the bonus period, which will be before the customer has fulfilled any wagering requirements attached to the free bet promotion.

Customers should always read the terms and conditions, including the small print, to find out any information regarding minimum odds requirements. Placing a bet on shorter odds than required will mean not qualifying for the bonus and will mean missing out on it altogether if the promotion only applied to the first bet using a new account.

Free bet winnings can be withdrawn into your account when the bet has been won, and all the terms and conditions are met. This also includes the turn over requirements as well as the minimum qualifying odds.

When it comes to promotions, some bookmakers are far ahead of the curve than others. These are the best bookmaker offers:

1. Betfair: £100 free bets. Betfair offers new customers the chance to increase their bankroll by offering five free bets worth £20 each. Apart from the fact this sportsbook bet offer has no turnover requirement; it also comes with a low odds requirement of 1.50, which offers immense value to the punter. However, this offer is exclusive to new customers.
2. Betway: Betway rewards customers who deposit funds using their debit and credit cards as well as PayPal with a free bet worth £30. It has a single turnover requirement with the lowest odds of 1.75.
3. 888Sport: This bookmaker gives out £40 in free bets to new customers who deposit a minimum of £10 into their accounts. The free bets have a wagering requirement of 1.50 and are enjoyed using the promo code “FOOTBALL.”
4. Ladbrokes: The offer by this betting company is restricted to new customers from the UK and Ireland. Ladbrokes gives these punters £30 in free bets when they place bets worth £10. The offer has no turnover requirements, and bets must have minimum odds of 1.50 and above.
5. BetVictor: BetVictor offers new customers £30 when they bet £5 on a selection worth 2.00 or more. The offer has no turnover requirements. It is given to the punter when the bet is placed within seven days of activating the account. The offer must also be used within seven days of placing a qualifying bet.

The best time to enjoy free bets offered by betting companies is during major sporting events. These events include the Stanley Cup Finals, Champions League Finals, World Cup Finals, Super Bowl, MLB World Series, and NBA finals.

Euro 2020 Free Bets

Bet365 offers new customers a maximum of £100 as bet credits during the Qatar World Cup.
William Hill also offers 100% matched betting up to £100, as well as Acca boost offers.
888sport offers enhanced odds as well as £40 worth of free bets on a £10 bet.

Copa America 2020 Free Bets

Bet365 offers punters the chance t stream all Copa America matches where the punter funds account 24 hours to the event.

Women’s World Cup 2023 Free Bets

William Hill registration offers for new customers, and acca betting meaning boost for four-folds and above per day.